First Reading: I Samuel 26:2.7-9.12-13.22-23/Resp. Psalm: Psalm 103:1-4.8.10.12-13 (R. 8a) Second Reading: I Corinthians 15:45-49/Gospel Acclamation: Jn. 13:34/Gospel: Luke 6:27-38
Theme: The New Love Ethic: Love Your Enemies
Imagine you are the one who takes care of the needs of a family relation, and are ignorant of the machinations of this relative of yours against you. Again, imagine a close friend or dependant who is a monthly beneficiary of your generosity, yet unknowingly, this person goes around to defame your character. If the individuals in the two scenarios are identified to your surprise, what will be your immediate reaction towards them? In the long run, will you pay them back in their own coin?
In today’s first reading, we see a similar case in the life of David. As a very young man, he comes to the rescue of King Saul and the whole nation of Israel when he [David] calls the bluff of the valiant warrior, the arrogant Philistine named Goliath. He defeats and kills Goliath with a mere smooth stone from a brook (cf. I Sam. 17). King Saul becomes jealous and envious of David and seeks out his life. What did David do to Saul to incur the latter’s bitter hatred and desire to eliminate the former? Interestingly, Saul, who sets out to destroy David is himself delivered into the hands of David (cf. I Sam. 26:1-2, 7). If it is an unforgiving, not-forgetting and bitter person, this is to be reckoned as the greatest opportunity and the happiest moment for an appropriate ‘tit-for-tat”!
Even when spurred on by his friend Abishai, David does not budge. Abishai tells David: “God has given your enemy into your hand this day; now therefore let me pin him to the earth with one stroke of the spear, and I will not strike him twice” (I Sam. 26:8). Yet, the God-fearing, forgiving and compassionate David responds thus: “Do not destroy him; for who can put forth his hand against the Lord’s anointed, and be guiltless?” (I Sam. 26:9). This also reveals David’s deep reverence for God’s law: “‘Touch not my anointed ones’, he warned, ‘do my prophets no harm!’” (Ps. 105:15). Instead of paying evil for evil, David, who believes in the sacredness of life, shows mercy and generosity to Saul. In the end, goodness triumphs over evil, light defeats darkness, and the heart of love and courage swallows and wins over the heart of hatred and fear!
Aware that David’s action in the Saul-David saga is godly and worthy of emulation, the Psalmist highlights this special quality of graciousness which finds its origin in God himself. Hence, the Psalmist sings: “It is the Lord who forgives all your sins, who heals every one of your ills, who redeems your life from the grave, who crowns you with mercy and compassion. The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and rich in mercy. He does not treat us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our faults” (Ps. 103:3-4, 8, 10). We need to imitate this!
To emphasise the aforementioned, Jesus in today’s Gospel admonishes: “Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you” (Lk. 6:27-28). This is exactly what David does for King Saul in the first reading. Furthermore, Jesus insists: “But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for he is kind to the ungrateful and the selfish” (Lk. 6:35). The tendency or the status quo had been to love those who love you and hate those who hate you. Jesus comes into the picture and makes a total overhaul of this system. As a matter of fact, this is a complete reversal, a revolutionary change, a new love-ethic which calls for a total conversion of heart and mind, change of attitude and mind-set towards adversaries.
Beloved in Christ, experience shows that it is very easy to love those who love us, to do good to those who do good to us, and to lend to those who give to us when we are in need. However, to love our enemies is a big difficulty! Yet, that is exactly what Jesus tells us to do, and we must obey him. Christ is asking us to go beyond mere and ordinary reciprocity to a love ethic of un-calculating generosity. Surely, this is the new command Christ himself gives us: “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you” (Jn. 13:34). We are aware that we do not deserve the love of Christ for all our sins against him, the sins which make us enemies of God. In spite of this, Jesus comes into the world, sheds his life’s blood to win salvation for all humanity. So, the love ethic we are called to embrace has Christ himself as the standard, the Gospel values as its instruments and we as his obedient imitators. This is achievable via a life of grace.
In addition, to love one’s enemies is not a natural feeling, but an act of the will, a conscious decision following the demands of the Gospel. Such love is unselfish, unconditional and sacrificial. For this reason, in the second reading, St. Paul compares the first Adam with Jesus Christ, who is typologically the second Adam. Whereas the first man is earthly and selfish, the second is heavenly and selfless. The first brings death through a self-interested condition; the second brings life through unreserved and limitless love. The first man directs love towards himself; the second sacrifices all his love for the sake of the entire world. The first Adam is imperfect, the second is perfection itself! This love ethic makes us acquire the godly image which sees people as brothers and sisters here on earth, and who, hopefully, will one day sit together with our Father in heaven. In this regard, we are encouraged to learn from Christ, the one whose perfection makes us live this new love ethic filled with a deep sense of the sacred, of grace, mercy, forgiveness and compassion.
Our compassion for one another, gives us the capacity to be touched by or be sensitive to the needs of others. Consequently, it makes us ready to assist them. This is what motivates David to save Israel from the hands of the Philistines and to preserve the life of his ‘enemy,’ King Saul. A new love ethic demands the destruction of all the vices of hatred, jealousy, envy, greed, division, self[1]centredness, unhealthy competition, corruption, fraud, intimidation and dirty politics. It also calls for a concerted effort to pull down all social structures of oppression, poverty and marginalisation.
All too often, we see in the world, individuals, couples, families, friends, business partners, colleagues and relationships weighed down by unforgiving spirit. This is what makes us see one another as enemies. In the arena of un-forgiveness, phenomena such as suspicion, malice, curse, sickness, bitterness, disfavour, retrogression, unhappiness and murder, are never absent. Jesus wants to heal us from all these ills which destroy our souls. He is the divine physician who is able to diagnose our conditions accurately, and treat our ailments with no side effects. Let us pray to him to soften our hearts in order to change our mind-set to embrace his new love ethic. Happy Sunday and may God richly bless us! Remember Jesus’ New Love Ethic: #Love-Your-Enemies#
